With Arms Wide Open
by Cheap Trixie
Summary: The second story in my Juice/Clarissa saga. This follows season one of the show. Clarissa and Juice have been married for nearly two years and feel like they can handle anything life throws at them. But now, they've got a new issue coming up...parenthood.
1. Chapter One

**Authors Note: In order to understand this, you should probably read my first story, To The Moon and Back. It's a prequel to this story. This will follow the first season of SOA. I'm planning to do one for each season, told from the POV of Clarissa and Juice. **

**Disclaimer: I only own Clarissa. Everyone else belongs to Kurt Sutter.**

* * *

_Well I just heard _

_The news today_

_Seems my life_

_Is gonna change_

_I close my eyes_

_Begin to pray_

_As tears of joy stream down my face_

_-Creed_

* * *

**August 2008-**

Clarissa Ortiz sat on the toilet in the tiny bathroom at Teller-Morrow. She stared at the pregnancy test in her hand, the little pink plus sign glaring back at her. _Shit_, she thought. _Shit, shit_. A sudden knock caused her to jump.

"Baby?" Her husband's voice came through the door. "You all right? You been in there a while…"

"I'm okay." She said, her voice a little higher than usual. She shoved the pee stick in her purse before she opened the door. Juice was standing there, looking genuinely concerned.

"Are you still sick?" He asked. She'd been throwing up that morning, as she had been for the past few mornings. He laid his hand on her cheek. "You're not warm."

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine."

He looked at her, knowing something was up, just not sure what it was.

"You sure?" He asked finally.

She managed to roll her eyes, to try and act like her normal self. "Yes, Juice. I promise, I'm all right."

He put his arms around her and kissed her lightly on the mouth. "I'm worried about you."

"Baby, it's nothing." She assured him.

Clarissa went back into the office, where her mother was waiting.

"What's it say?" Gemma asked. She was the one who had brought her daughter the pregnancy test. She knew the symptoms when she saw them.

"Positive." Clarissa replied, sitting down in her chair. Gemma smirked.

"Told you."

Clarissa nodded and closed her eyes, laying her head down on the desk.

"Yep. You sure called it."

"When you gonna tell your husband?"

Clarissa peeked up at her. "I don't know. With all the shit that's going on, this couldn't have come at a worst time."

Gemma nodded. The day before Jax's son had been born ten weeks early, with rips in his heart and belly. The night before that, the club's gun warehouse had been burnt to the ground.

"You're tellin' me." Gemma agreed. "But, sweetie, babies don't care how fucked up shit is in your life. They come anyway. You can't keep this a secret, _especially_ from Juice."

Clarissa sighed. "I know. I'll tell him tonight."

In the bay area, Juice watched Clarissa through the window.

"She all right?" Clay asked. Juice shrugged.

"She says she is." He answered. "She's acting weird."

"Weirder than usual?" Chibs asked, grinning.

Juice nodded, not even noticing the teasing remark. "Yeah." He said. "Something's up."

"What's she been doing that's weird?" Half Sack, their new Prospect, asked. "Maybe we can figure it out."

"She's been sick the last four mornings." Juice said. "And she's been crying a lot. Over stupid shit, too."

"Like what?" Chibs asked.

"Like, the night before last, we were watching TV, and she just busted out in tears over a commercial."

"Was it one of those with the abused animals?" Half Sack asked. "Because those are really sad."

"No," Juice gave him a strange look. "It was some long distance phone thing."

"Oh."

"Is it her…uh…monthly?" Clay asked. "Because I know how moody she gets during that. Unfortunately, she gets that from her Mama."

"No," Juice shook his head. "No, that hasn't happened yet this month." And he paused, because it should've happened already. Not that he really kept track of his wife's periods, but he kind of had a round about idea of when they were due…and nothing this month.

"_Shi-it_…" Bobby grinned from where he was sitting. "Sounds to me like she's knocked up."

"What?" Juice looked at them, wide-eyed. "_What_?"

"Look at the facts." Bobby started ticking them off on his fingers. "She's been sick in the mornings, but it passes after a few hours. She's moodier than usual. She's crying over stupid things, hasn't had her period. Makes sense, doesn't it?"

The other guys nodded their agreement and Juice felt the blood drain from his face.

"How did this happen?" His voice was strangled, he felt like he'd been punched in the stomach.

"Son, if you don't know how it happened, you got more problems than an unexpected baby." Clay told him.

"I _know_ how it happened." Juice snapped. "I just…Jesus Christ. Why didn't she tell me?"

"That's something you need to ask her."

"No shit." He looked through the window again, where he could see his wife talking to Gemma. "I'm gonna ask her that right now!"

Juice marched to the office door and flung it open. The cold air from the A.C. hit him in the face. "Are you pregnant?" He demanded.

Clarissa's mouth dropped open. "How did you know?" She asked.

Juice felt like his heart might fall out his butt; it was so far into his stomach. "So…you are?"

Numbly, his wife nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked, the words sounding way more hurt than he wanted them to.

"Because I just found out myself about five minutes ago." She shot back.

Gemma stood up. "I'm just gonna go and…give you kids some privacy." She said. She shut the office door shut behind her and shooed the other guys away from it.

"Aww, but I wanna hear!" Chibs whined. Gemma shut him up with a look.

In the office, Juice was still looking at her. "A baby?" He said. "Are you sure?"

"Yep," Clarissa nodded. She could barely look at him. "Are you mad?"

"Mad? Why would I be _mad_?"

"We've only been married for two years." She said. "Not even that. It won't be two years until October and I just thought…"

"Stop." Juice knelt down beside her. "I'm not mad. Surprised as hell, yes, but not mad. This is great! We're going to have a baby!"

She was finally able to look up at him and when she did, she saw in his face that he was telling the truth. He was really excited for them to have a child together. And, with that, her fear seemed to melt away. For the first time in days, since she began to suspect what was going on, her heart lightened.

Juice laid his hand on her still flat stomach. "It's in there right now." He said. "Hi, baby!" He spoke directly to her stomach. "Hi! This is your Daddy!"

"You realize that it's like, the size of a pea right now." She told him. Juice looked at her.

"It is?" He asked.

"I think so." She laid her head against his shoulder. "We have a lot to learn in the next eight months, huh?"

"I guess we do." He said. "How far along are you, do you think? When's he or she gonna get here?"

"Well, I won't know for sure until I see a doctor." She said. "And I'm gonna try and get in to see one tomorrow, but I don't think I'm more than a few weeks. So maybe the middle of April?"

"Okay," He nodded. April. Juice silently vowed to learn everything he could about taking care of babies between now and then.

"I know you guys are planning retribution for what happened the night before last, but you'll be able to go to the doctor with me, won't you?" She asked. "I want you to."

"Yeah, of course." He reassured her. "I'll have to run it by Clay, but I'm sure it won't be an issue."

"All right." She kissed him. "I love you, baby."

"I love you too, Hummingbird." He said.

She picked up the phone as he left, preparing to make her appointment. She watched out the window as Juice confirmed the others suspicions and there were shouts of congratulations and hugs all around.

It was repeated a few minutes later when she walked out of the office.

"The baby's having a baby!" Chibs said. He threw his arms around her. She grinned up at him. Everyone was taking the news so well. Why had she been worried?

"You get that appointment made?" Juice asked her. She nodded.

"Yeah, they got me in today."

"Oh, really? When?"

"An hour from now."

They both looked at Clay. He sighed. "All right, go. But," He pointed at Juice. "You be ready by this evening, you hear me? We got shit to take care of."

"I will be." He nodded.

"I'm gonna run home real quick and get a shower." Clarissa said.

"Why?" Juice asked. "You took one last night before we went to bed."

Clarissa rolled her eyes.

"The doctor's gonna be examining my hoo-ha. I want it to be…you know." She wanted to say _clean,_ but she couldn't seem to get the word out.

"Yeah," He said, biting his lip to keep from smiling.

"You wanna go with me, or should I come back by here and pick you up?"

"I'll go with you." He said. "I could use a shower myself."

They explained to Gemma where they were going and prepared to leave.

"No doubling up on the showers, you two!" She shouted at them as they walked to their car. "Or you'll never make it to the doctor in time!"

"She knows us too well." Juice commented as he started the Mustang.

* * *

Juice had never been inside an OB-GYN's office before. Shit, he'd never even been in the waiting room. He sat beside Clarissa as she filled out the paperwork, idly flipping through a Children's Highlight's magazine.

"Good read?" She asked, looking up from filling out some extremely personal questions. Did they really need to know how many times a day she pooped?

"Hey, it was this or Women's Day." He replied. "I used to read these when I was a kid; I loved them. We should get a subscription for the baby."

Clarissa smiled. "It'll be awhile before he or she can read those."

"I guess you're right." He said. She went back to the paperwork and he to the magazine.

"I know it's a bit early for this," She said after she'd dropped the papers at the front desk. "But if it's a boy, can we name him Thomas Wayne? You know, after my brother?"

"Of course." Juice told her. "Yeah, of course we can. But what if it's a girl?"

"Shit," She said. "I don't know. How have we been together for six years and never discussed baby names?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Any you're particularly partial to?"

She shook her head. "No. We'll have to pick up one of those baby name books, I guess. I'll do it later; I'm gonna run by the bookstore this evening and get _What to Expect When You're Expecting_. Maybe some others."

"Okay," He said. He looked at her. "Do you want a boy or a girl?"

"Honestly, I don't care either way." She replied. "As long as it's healthy. But it would be kinda fun to have a little girl, I think."

"Yeah," He said, picturing himself with a pretty baby girl he could spoil. A daddy's girl, he thought.

"But a boy would be fun, too." She said.

"Clarissa Ortiz?" The nurse, a young, petite girl, with burgundy colored hair, called before Juice could answer.

They followed her back to an exam room.

"I'm Tawny; I'll be your nurse today." She said. She looked and Juice. "Is this your husband?"

"Yeah." He said. She eyed him in his cut, and then looked at Clarissa.

"We're gonna take your weight and vitals." She said. "And then give you a pregnancy test, so you'll have to pee in a cup for us."

"Okay," Clarissa said. She did everything she was asked, answered all the questions. Juice sat silently in one of the extra chairs, just listening.

"All right," Tawny said, handing her a plastic cup with a sticker. "I need you to write your name on this and leave it at the nurse's station when you're done. Then you need to come back in here and put this paper gown on. Dr. Archer will be in to examine you shortly." She looked at Juice. "You can wait here, Mr. Ortiz."

He nodded. "Okay."

Clarissa was back within five minutes and he held her clothes as she changed into the paper gown and sat up on the exam table.

"This is weird." She said. He nodded.

"I agree."

They sat there making idle conversation about everyday stuff; their friends, their family, what have you, until the doctor came in.

She was an older woman, probably in her late fifties or early sixties, with silvery white hair cut into a short bob and a friendly face.

"I'm Melanie Archer." She said. "You must be Mr. and Mrs. Ortiz."

"I'm Clarissa; this is my husband, Juice."

"Hi." She smiled and shook each of their hands. She didn't even glance at Juice's cut, although she most likely knew who they were.

"Well, Clarissa, you're most definitely pregnant." She confirmed. "And, if you were correct about the date of your last menstrual cycle, you're a little more than a month along. So that puts your due date at about April the twentieth, give or take a few days."

She did the exam quickly, while Juice sat uncomfortably behind her, looking at the ceiling. When they were done and were back out in the car, Clarissa kissed him on the cheek.

"I love you." She said. He grinned at her.

"I love you too."

"Are you really happy about this?" She asked. "Because it's real now, baby."

"Yes." He sighed as he pulled out of the parking lot and headed towards home. "I am. I promise."

"All right." She said. She slipped her hand into his.

Later that evening, after he met up with the other guys and they were on their way to San Leandro, Clay looked at him.

"Well, what did the doctor say?" He asked.

Juice grinned as he started the van. "She confirmed it. Clarissa's a month along, and the due date is April twentieth."

"I heard you knocked up my little sister," Jax said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Congrats."

"I don't get why you guys keep congratulating him." Tig said. "I mean, yeah its good news and all, but shit, all he did was get his tip wet and shoot a little straighter than normal. Not like he ran a fuckin' marathon or something."

"Thanks, man." Juice said. They fell into silence as they drove to Mayan territory.


	2. Chapter Two

**Author's Note: Thank you so much for all the good reviews and adds I've gotten for this story already! I'm glad everyone likes it already!**

* * *

"What the hell are you reading?"

Juice looked up from his book at his brother-in-law. "It's, uh, _The Expectant Father's Guide to Parenthood_." He said, holding it up. "Clarissa wants me to read it."

"And you're actually doing it?" Jax asked in disbelief.

Juice shrugged. "It's got some interesting stuff…" He trailed off at Jax's raised brows. "Okay, it's pretty lame, but do you know how much I know about taking care of a baby? Nada. Zilch. And I'm _not_ gonna go into this blind."

Jax shrugged. "That's one way to look at it, I guess." He said. He didn't want to admit that his younger brother-in-law was taking the news of his spouse being pregnant much better than he himself had taken it when Wendy had discovered she was expecting.

Of course, Clarissa wasn't a crank head, either.

Jax went back to work and Juice back to the book. It wasn't as lame as he had told Jax. It did have some interesting things about dealing with your pregnant wife. Juice was especially interested in the fact that women's sex drives usually tripled while they were expecting.

He stuffed the book in his backpack when Bobby pulled up. The older man held up a paper sack. "I got the good shit."

"Ooh!" Clarissa rushed out of the office. "Muffins! Can I have one?"

Bobby pulled a second sack out of his saddle bag. "Made some especially for you, little mama." He told her as he climbed off his bike.

Clarissa kissed his cheek. "For me?"

"Now, they've got Vitamin D3 in them and that's very good for pregnant mothers." He said. He looked at Juice. "I'm countin' on you, Juicy; to make sure she eats healthy through this. That means," He took the Mountain Dew can from her hand. "Cutting _way_ down on the sugar and caffeine."

"What am I supposed to drink?" She asked.

Bobby gave her a look. "How about water?"

She made a face. "Gross." She sighed. "I'm already cutting out my cigarettes! You're gonna take away my other vices too?"

Bobby shook his head. "Healthy mama makes for healthy baby." He looked at Clarissa and Juice. "Got it?"

"Got it." Clarissa muttered. "What am I supposed to wash my muffins down with?"

"There's some milk in the clubhouse kitchen." Juice told her. "I'll go get you some."

"Milk," She said. "Yummy."

"Bobby's right, Ris." He said. "You've got to eat healthy for the baby."

"I eat healthy!" She protested. He cocked his eyebrow at her.

"What'd you eat for breakfast before we left the house?"

"A Mountain Dew and some Reese's Pieces." She muttered, a little shamefaced.

"Exactly. Now, I'm gonna get you some milk and you're gonna go sit back down in the office where it's cool, okay?"

She smiled at how overprotective he was being. "Okay…_Daddy_."

He grinned and was getting ready to go get her drink when his cell rang. It was his city hall contact. "Shit," He said. He looked at Half-Sack. "Prospect, run and get my girl a glass of that milk in the kitchen."

Half-Sack nodded and dropped the tool he was holding, heading for the clubhouse. By the time Juice finished the call, he was already back at work and Clarissa was eating her muffins and filling out some paperwork.

"Guys are waiting for you inside." She told him. "Everything all right?"

He shrugged and shook his head, jogging towards the clubhouse.

"I just got an update from my city hall snitch," He said as he walked into the coolness inside. "Looks like Hale's got a warrant to search the warehouse."

Clay sighed and Jax looked up from the money he was counting.

"Here," Clay handed Juice an envelope full of money. His cut of the gun sale, Juice knew. He counted it quickly before stuffing it in his pocket. "That's gonna be the last of the gun green for awhile." Clay told him.

"Yeah," He nodded, having figured as much. "Clarissa wants to start putting our extra back, saving it to buy shit for the baby."

"That's a good idea." Clay told him. "Diapers, formula, that crap adds up quick."

"She's pretty pissed at me?" Bobby asked. "For, uh, suggesting she eat better?"

Juice shrugged. "Truth hurts." He said. "She does need to eat better, cut out the soda and candy for meals."

In the office, Clarissa was still feeling a little pouty. She was twenty-four, not twelve, and she didn't need a bunch of men telling her how to eat. Taking away her soda was bad enough, but then to expect her to drink water? Yeah, right. She glared at the glass of milk the Prospect had brought her, via her husband.

She tried to rearrange her face into a happier look when she saw Clay and the guys coming. She leaned over the repo sheets she was working on; let her hair hang down into her face.

"We never would've known about the Nord/Mayan hook up." Clay was saying as they came in. Her mother came in the opposite door.

"I gotta get this shit to Rosen's guy." She said. "We need a big; Jew brain to figure out these Bluebird losses."

"Not this big, Jew brain baby." Bobby said. "I can barely count my own fingers."

Jax nudged Clarissa's chair, looked at his mother. "I'm gonna go see the kid later."

"Okay, we'll be there." Gemma laid her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "And I still wanna do that dinner, maybe tomorrow night."

"Sure." Jax nodded and looked at his sister. "You feeling all right, darlin'?"

She shrugged. "Morning sickness is kicking my ass." She admitted. "And Juice says no more soda and candy."

Jax lit a smoke. "He's right. You gotta take care of yourself."

She smiled. "I know."

Jax reached out and tugged her ponytail. It was still hard for him to believe that his kid sister was a married woman; now she was expecting a child. It made him feel old.

Clarissa looked back and forth between her mother and stepfather, sensing that they wanted to talk alone. About what, she wasn't sure. "I gotta pee." She said, standing up. "Don't eat my muffins."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Clay told her.

She peed and when she came out of the bathroom, she had to smile, spotting Juice propped up against an auto lift, reading the book she'd picked up for him. He was taking the fatherhood thing very seriously, she was glad to see.

"Learning anything new?" She asked him. He looked up at her.

"Loads." He said. "I now know how an egg actually gets fertilized and turns into a fetus."

"You didn't already know that? Jesus, where were you during sex ed in middle school?"

He grinned. "Like I was paying attention."

"Oh, you and Seth were too busy giggling every time the teacher said 'vagina', huh?"

"Pretty much." He admitted.

"What're you turtledoves talking about over here?" Chibs asked as he walked up.

"How Juice used to giggle at the word 'vagina'." Clarissa answered with a totally straight face.

"What's this _used to_?" Chibs asked. "He _still_ giggles at it."

"Um, excuse me, I do not _giggle_." Juice said. "I laugh, I chuckle, perhaps I've cackled a time or two, but I do not _giggle_."

Clarissa shook her head, laughing. Before she could answer though, Clay was yelling that he needed to see the guys in the chapel.

"Uh-oh," She said, sobering. "This doesn't sound good."

Chibs sighed. "Like we can take anymore shit on our heads." He slung his arm over Juice's shoulders. "Come on, Da. Let's go see what's up."

"What's going on?" Clarissa asked her mother as she went back into the office.

Gemma shook her head. "I don't know." She said. "I got drop these papers with Rosen's guy. You wanna ride along?"

Clarissa nodded. "Sure." She said.

In her mother's Caddie, she strapped her seatbelt.

"I haven't had a chance to tell you, with everything that's been going on," Gemma said to her as they pulled out of the lot. "But I'm real happy for you and Juice."

"You are?" Clarissa asked. Gemma nodded.

"Of course I am!" She said. "Why would I not be?"

"Well, I wasn't sure at how you felt about being a grandma again."

"Oh, baby," Gemma glanced at her. "That doesn't bother me. As long as my grandbabies are healthy, that's all I care about. Juice is pretty excited about it, huh?"

Clarissa nodded. "Yeah. He called his family back in Queens last night. They're real happy too."

"I bet." Gemma glanced at her again. "I saw him reading that book you bought."

"Yeah," Clarissa smiled. "He says he wants to know everything about taking care of a baby before he or she gets here."

"That's good." Gemma said. "But he'll learn most of it hands on."

She smiled again. "I know."

It didn't take them very long to drop off the paperwork at Rosen's office.

"You wanna do a little shopping?" Gemma asked as they passed a baby boutique.

Clarissa looked at her. "Um…isn't it kinda early for that?"

Gemma shook her head. "We can buy some gender neutral stuff."

Clarissa grinned. "Okay." She said. "Why the hell not?"

As they poked around the store, Clarissa realized just how much shit a baby needed. She said as much to her mother.

"Ah," Gemma waved her hand. "You don't need half this stuff, especially for a newborn. They grow so quick, you only need about ten outfits for them."

"Really?" Clarissa asked. "So…I guess these baby disco shoes are out?"

She held up a pair of tiny, hot pink, glittery boots. Gemma rolled her eyes. "How the hell would you even get that on an infant's foot?"

Clarissa shrugged. "This is cute." She held up a pale yellow sleeper with baby ducks on it. "And it could work for a boy or a girl, right?"

Gemma nodded. "That's right. Look there, you're being sensible."

"I'm gonna buy it." Clarissa said. "Aww! And look at this! Oh, I have to buy this!" She held up a white onesie that said _I love my Daddy_ in crayon writing.

"Juice'll like that." Gemma commented.

They browsed for over an hour before heading back to the garage.

"Where the hell were you guys?" Clay asked as the climbed out of the Caddie, both of the hauling shopping bags.

"We were buying baby stuff." Gemma said.

"What?" Clay asked. "She's been knocked up for about two minutes! Why the hell did you buy all this?"

"Some of it's for Abel." Gemma told him. "Look at this." She held up a onesie similar to the one that Clarissa had grabbed, only it said _I love my Grandpa_.

"I got one too!" Clarissa pulled a matching one from her bag. "And look what I got!" She pulled the love my daddy onesie out to show Juice. "Isn't it cute?"

"Adorable." He agreed. "But, baby, let's not go overboard yet, okay? We don't even know what we're having…"

"I got all gender neutral stuff." She said. "See?"

She held out the ducky sleeper.

Juice shook his head, knowing better than to argue with her. "All right," He said. "I just don't want to go crazy buying stuff yet."

"I won't." She kissed him quickly. "Where you guys headed?"

"We gotta go see Skeeter at the morgue." He answered. She wrinkled her nose.

"He was a couple of grades ahead of me in school." She said. "And he was weird then."

"I know, but it's…it's a club thing." He said quickly. He bent to give her another kiss; the guys were waiting. "I'll explain later, I gotta go."

"All right." She told him. "Be careful!"

"I always am, Hummingbird." He replied as he headed towards his bike. She blew him a kiss that he pretended to catch and put in his cut pocket.

Jax rolled his eyes. "You guys make me sick." He said. "Like, literally."

They were only gone for a few hours and when they came back, Clarissa quickly dumped out the rest of the Mountain Dew she was chugging.

"Not a damn word." She said to Piney, who was sitting across from her. He shrugged as she tossed the can in the trash.

"My lips are sealed, darlin'." He said. She groaned when she saw Chibs pull in with a black Suburban.

"Is it just me or does that look like Darby's SUV?"

Piney shrugged again, kept eating his sandwich.

"Hey, baby." Juice said as she walked up to him and Chibs.

"Hey," She said. "What's with the Suburban?"

"Uh…I'll explain later." He told her. He looked past her at the car that was pulling in. "Who the _hell_ is that?"

"That, me ol' mucker, is one hundred and thirty pounds of hog riding giggity." Chibs told him. Clarissa rolled her eyes.

"Emily Duncan." She told Juice. "I went to school with her, too. She was a slut then and she's a slut now."

"Ah, be nice." Chibs said. "She's a good ride. And she's about to take one for the club."

"Gross." Clarissa said. "What's she doing for the club?"

Juice told her their plan and by the time he was done explaining, she felt a twinge of sympathy for poor Emily. "You realize this is insane, right?"

Juice shrugged. "Jax is right; it gives Lodi a front page crime without us actually having to kill. It's a good idea."

"I guess." Clarissa said. "Oh, by the way, Mom's having a dinner tomorrow night. She wants us there. She says she's got steaks from the German."

"Shit yes, we'll be there." Juice said. "I fuckin' love those steaks."

She giggled and went back to work. Juice and Chibs puttered around doing menial shit, waiting for Jax to finish his "business" with Emily.

"I'm going to the hospital to see Abel." Gemma said after awhile. "You coming?"

Clarissa shook her head. "No," She said. "I'm feeling sort of nauseated."

Gemma smirked. "I had morning _and_ afternoon sickness with Jax and with you and Thomas." She said. "Could be what it is."

"Great." Clarissa said. She laid her head down on the desk.

"Why don't you go on home for the day? It's almost three, anyway." Gemma told her. "I can finish up here when I get back."

Clarissa looked up at her. "You sure?"

Gemma nodded. "Go on."

She told Juice what was up, where she was going. He pulled her close to him.

"I'm sorry, baby." He said. She looked up at him.

"What're you sorry for?" She asked.

"For you having to go through this."

She shrugged. "It's the price of being pregnant." She told him. He kissed her, deeply. Chibs groaned in disgust.

"Get a feckin' room." He said.

"I don't know what time I'll be home tonight." Juice told her. "I'm not sure how long this will take."

"It's all right." She said. "I'll try to wait up for you. Maybe, if I'm feeling better, we can…" She trailed off and her hand slid down his leg and lingered near his crotch. She let him fill in the blanks himself.

"Right here, guys!" Chibs reminded them of his presence. They both ignored him.

"That sounds good." He breathed into her ear. "Like, really, really good."

"I'll be waiting, then." She said. "Love you."

"Love you, too."

It was after 10:00 before Juice made it home that night.

"How're you feeling?" He asked after he walked through the front door.

"Better." Clarissa answered. She was stretched out across the couch, watching Family Guy reruns on Adult Swim. "I saved you some supper."

"Thanks," He told her. "I'm gonna grab a shower; can you heat it up for me?"

She nodded and headed into the kitchen to reheat the pork chops, mashed potatoes, and carrots she'd fixed for dinner. By the time he got out of the shower, she had a hot plate of food and a glass of iced tea waiting for him. Juice ate it quickly in front of the television as they watched Family Guy together. He was trying hard not to think about what had happened on their way home, when Jax had stopped to confront the asshole who cut him off earlier that evening.

"You ready to go to bed?" Clarissa asked when he was finished eating. He nodded. "You go on, let me clean this up real quick."

Juice went into their bedroom and pulled off his clothes, slipping into their queen sized bed naked. Clarissa joined him within ten minutes. She undressed and got into bed with him.

"Baby, you would not believe the evening I just had." He said. She climbed up beside him.

"Then let me help you relax." She whispered and began to kiss his neck.

Clarissa slowly worked her way down his chest with her mouth. He shivered when she paused to run her tongue in circles around his belly button and groaned when she dipped lower to take him into her mouth. He fisted his hands in her long hair as she moved up and down, swirling her tongue around him. He was so tensed up, it didn't take him long to finish.

"My turn." He said when he was done. Clarissa sighed when he flipped her onto her back and slid his fingers between her legs.

* * *

"You look better." Gemma said the next morning. Clarissa grinned, thinking of the night before.

"Yeah," She said.

"You wanna come to the store with me; help me get some stuff for tonight?"

She shrugged. "Sure."

It took them awhile at the grocery store, and Clarissa noticed that there was a hold up when they got in line. It was Donna Winston, Opie's wife. She looked incredibly embarrassed and even more so when the cashier came back and told her that his manager had said they couldn't take anymore of her checks, on account of the last two bouncing. Donna's face flamed red and she stuttered that she'd pay in cash. She than began to dig stuff out of her bag.

When they got to the head of line, Gemma nodded at the things that Donna had taken out. "I'll take those too." She said.

The cashier looked at her. "I'm not sure-." He began.

"I said, I'll take those too." Gemma repeated, her voice growing hard.

"Yes, ma'am." He replied meekly and added the other things to Gemma's bill.

"You know Donna won't take that stuff from you." Clarissa told her mother as they headed out the door. "She's got pride she ain't used yet."

"I'll handle it." Gemma told her. "You go wait in the car."

"But-."

"I told you to go wait in the car, Clarissa."

Clarissa held up her hands. "Okay, okay."

She fiddled with the radio and watched her mom and Donna have a conversation. Not surprisingly, Donna didn't take the extra bag.

"Don't even say it." Gemma said as she climbed into the car. Clarissa shrugged.

"I wasn't gonna say anything."

"Good girl."

Gemma dropped Clarissa off at TM before heading on to her house. Clarissa was going into the office when Deputy Chief Hale pulled up.

"Hey, Clarissa." He said. She knew the club didn't like him and she knew why, but he was always unfailingly polite to her.

"Hi," She said.

"I heard you and Juice were expecting a baby." He told her. "Congratulations."

"Thanks."

"I'm looking for Jax and Clay. Any chance their around?"

She pointed across the lot. The two of them were headed their way. Clarissa decided she was better off not knowing and went into the office, shutting the door.

She watched out the window as Hale had a heated conversation with her stepfather and brother. He spat on the ground and stalked back to his jeep.

Clarissa closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the glass window. Sometimes she wondered if this was such a good place to bring their baby into.

Sometimes, the answer was no.


	3. Chapter Three

A week passed without incident. Even at five weeks along, Clarissa could already spot little changes in her body.

"Do my nipples look weird to you?" She asked Juice on this particular Friday afternoon. She was standing topless in front of the mirror over their dresser.

"What?" He looked up. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, putting his boots on.

"Do they?"

"They look a little darker, I guess." He said. "But the book says that's normal."

"It does?"

"Oh yeah," He nodded. Thank the tiny baby Jesus for _The Expectant Father's Guide_. That book had everything Juice needed, including a whole chapter on the changes that would be taking place in your spouse's body and how to be sensitive to them. And Juice was pretty sure that saying her nipples looked weird was _not _being sensitive.

"I feel like I'm already getting a bump." She said, turning to look at herself sideways.

"Baby, you look fine." He told her. "I promise. Get dressed, we gotta go."

"All right, bossy." She replied, pulling her bra and tank top on. "Pretty soon I'm gonna be buying maternity clothes."

He eyed her still stick thin figure. "I think you got a while yet."

She shook her head and slid her feet into her flip flops. "Let's go."

They met her parents, Jax, Tig, and Bobby in the fairgrounds parking lot.

"I love the carnival." Clarissa said, slipping her hand into Juice's. "Jax remember when we were kids and you used to ride the baby roller coaster with me and Tommy?"

Jax smiled nostalgically. "Yeah."

"Was it like that one?" Bobby asked, pointing the little kid's coaster, which looked like a dragon.

"Yeah, it was exactly like that one." Clarissa grinned wickedly. "Bet you can't fit on it now, Jackson."

"Bet I can." Jax shot back.

"You'll never get your fat ass in one of those cars." She said. "I dare you to try."

"If he goes, I'm going." Tig said.

"I bet you ten dollars, not only can I get _my_ ass in one of those cars, but Bobby can too." Jax told her.

"Whoa, hey," Bobby held up his hands. "How did I get dragged into this?"

"You're on." Clarissa replied.

"This I gotta see." Clay said.

The three men bought a fistful of tickets and got in line.

"Nothing like watching three grown ass men ride the kiddie coaster." Juice commented as they got on.

Clarissa was laughing. "Oh, it was worth the ten bucks just to see this!" She pulled out her phone and started taking video. "YouTube, here I come!"

"You're a mean girl." Gemma said, laughing.

"Ten bucks, beeotch!" Jax said, holding his hand out when he got off the ride. Clarissa slapped a ten dollar bill in his hand.

"I think that was a win-win." She said.

They started walking across the fairgrounds.

"Let's go into the photobooth," Gemma told Clay. "Come on, I'll give you a quick hand job."

"Ah, I already got a picture of that." Clay said. Gemma grinned.

"This time it'll be my hand." Gemma laughed as Clay scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Put me down!"

"You a bad girl." Clay told her.

Clarissa rolled her eyes, but grinned. Nothing like hanging with your parents, she thought.

"Republican, 12:00." Clay said, dropping Gemma back to her feet.

Clarissa looked where he was indicating to see Elliot Oswald along with his wife and daughter.

"Hey, Clay." Elliot said.

"How you doing, Elliot?" Clay asked, shaking his hand.

"Okay, Clay." Elliot said.

"Hello, Karen." He shook Mrs. Oswald's hand. She smiled, looking incredibly snooty.

"Mom," The girl said. "I'm gonna go to the spinout again."

"Tristen, you've been on it four times already!"

"I know."

"Hey, here." Jax dug a handful of tickets from his pocket and handed them to the girl.

"That's not necessary." Her mother said.

"It's all right." Jax winked at Tristen. "They kicked me off 'cause I was screamin' too loud."

"What do you say?" Elliot asked his daughter.

"Thank you." She flushed under Jax's gaze.

"Baby," Clarissa turned to Juice as the Oswald's made their excuses to escape. "I want a funnel cake."

"What happened to eating better?" He asked.

"Come on," She pouted a little, in the way that he found incredibly sexy. "It's the carnival! I can't _not_ get a funnel cake!"

"All right, let's go." They headed down the midway.

"Don't forget, you gotta win me a stuffed animal sometime today." Clarissa reminded him.

"I never forget, do I?" He asked as they got in line for the funnel cakes. "We can do that next."

Going to the carnival had been one of their first dates and he had won her a stuffed animal, which she still had. It had kind of become a tradition for him to win her something every year.

They got their funnel cakes and sodas and headed towards the balloon pop. After Juice popped ten balloons in a row, Clarissa got to pick out her prize. She chose a pink and lime green giraffe.

"This makes six." Juice said, handing the stuffed animal to her. She grinned and tucked it under her arm.

"I know. I was thinking," She said around a bite of funnel cake. "When we set up the baby's nursery, I might get one of those nets that you hang from the ceiling and put all the stuffed animals you've won for me in it. Not just the ones from the carnivals, but the ones out of the claw machines too."

Juice put his arm around her waist. "That's a good idea." He said. "Which reminds me, we've got to decide which spare room we're going to turn into the nursery, so I can get started on it."

She sighed. "I know."

The spare room/nursery was a spot of contention between them. Their house, which they had bought about six months after they were married, had three bedrooms. The master bedroom was, obviously, their bedroom. One of the spare rooms Juice used as his "man cave". It housed all his biker stuff, his computers and his video games. Clarissa used the other room as her gym/library. Neither of them wanted to give up their room.

"All I'm saying, is that the man cave is bigger." She said. He rolled his eyes.

"Barely." He said. "And you never use that treadmill anymore, so-." He was cut off when his cell rang. "Shit, it's Chibs. Hold on. Hey," He answered the call.

"What's up?" Clarissa asked when he hung up.

"Let's go find your Mom and Clay." He said. "The Irish are ready."

She nodded. They'd finished their argument later she knew, but neither of them was going to budge.

"They're probably still at the photobooth." Clarissa said and sure enough, they were.

"The Irish are coming." Juice told Clay.

"Go find the others." Clay told him. Juice glanced at Clarissa.

"I'm fine; I'll hang with Mom." She said. He kissed her before jogging off.

"I see your man won you another prize." Gemma commented after Clay was gone. She eyed the giraffe. "Is it just me, or do they get tackier?"

Clarissa held it up. "I think it's adorable." She said.

The sun had set by the time the Sons got back to TM.

"You think the Prospect's deep enough?" Clay asked, nodding towards Half-Sack, who was sweeping out the garage.

"He might only have one nut," Jax said as he lit a smoke. "But it's a big one. I trust him."

Juice hopped up on the railing, remembering when he was the Prospect, how they had slowly started trusting him. Of course, his involvement with Clarissa had been a big help, he had no illusions about that.

"Hey, Prospect!" Clay yelled.

Half-Sack looked up. "Huh?"

"Come on over here, learn a thing."

Back at the carnival, Clarissa was telling her mother about the argument between herself and Juice.

"And he, of course, wants to keep his stupid man cave!" She was saying.

"Which room is bigger?" Gemma asked.

"His." Clarissa answered promptly.

"But your room is closer to the master bedroom?"

"Yeah."

"Simple." Gemma shrugged. "You move your things into his man cave and share that room. Your room becomes the nursery."

"That's… an incredibly simple solution." Clarissa said. "Why didn't we think of that?"

Gemma shrugged again. "You're still new at being married." She said. "I've been married, to Clay or your father, for more than half my life. Compromise is the secret."

Clarissa nodded and they walked on.

It wasn't maybe ten minutes later when they came across Karen Oswald shouting for her daughter. Her face was tearful. Gemma clutched at Clarissa's hand.

"What's going on?" She asked Karen.

"We can't find Tristen." She answered.

"Oh Jesus," Gemma said. "Well, she must be here somewhere."

"No," Karen said. "We've looked everywhere!"

"She's not on any of the rides." Elliot came up. Karen began to cry.

"Oh my God. Oh my God!"

"It's all right, we'll find her." Gemma, ever the voice of reason, said.

"Where was she last?" Clarissa asked. It hadn't been that long since she was a teenage girl, she knew that telling your parents you would be someplace and then actually being there were two different things.

"She was supposed to meet us by the arcade." Elliot said.

"We'll find her."

They looked all over the carnival without luck. By then, Elliot had called the police and Gemma and Clarissa knew they wouldn't be much use.

"You want me to drop you off at home?" Gemma asked her. Clarissa nodded.

"I hope that girl is okay." She said. Gemma laid her hand on her daughter's knee.

"I'm sure she's fine. Don't you go getting all upset, Ris."

Clarissa nodded again. Out of all the different advice she was getting on being pregnant, that was the one constant: try not to get really upset.

She sent Juice a text, letting him know she was headed home and got one back a few minutes later telling her to go on to bed, not to wait up, it would be a late night.

She wasn't sure of the time when she felt him slide into bed beside her, only that it was late. Still half asleep, she curled into him and felt him put his right arm around her body. She drifted back off and he was asleep within minutes himself.

Juice groaned when their alarm went off the next morning. He covered his head with the pillow. Clarissa shut it off and got out of bed. She figured he could sleep awhile longer while she got her shower and got ready for the day.

He was awake, however, when she came back ten minutes later.

"Morning." He muttered as he pulled his jeans on.

"Morning." She replied, dropping her towel. Not even a glance at her naked form from him. So it was gonna be one of _those _days, she thought. "Hey, I was talking to my mom about the nursery thing; she had a pretty good idea."

He grunted, which she took as a signal to go on.

"She said why don't we share your room, since it's bigger, and make mine the nursery, since it's closer to our room."

"What do you mean, _share my room_?" He asked.

"You know, I'll move my stuff in there."

He shook his head. "Not gonna happen."

She buttoned her shorts. "Well, why not?"

He looked at her. "Because I don't want to share my room, okay?"

"So, you're saying I should just get rid of all my stuff and you should get to keep yours?"

He shrugged. "Yeah."

She shook her head, started pulling a brush through her wet hair. "You're full of shit, you know that? I know you had a late night and you're tired, but you really need to quit being an asshole."

"So, because I don't want to share my space, I'm being an asshole?" He asked, pulling a pair of socks on. She nodded, braiding her hair back from her face.

"By saying that I have to get rid of all of my stuff and you get to keep yours, yes, you're being an asshole."

He opened his mouth, he'd obviously woken up spoiling for a fight, but she held up her hand. "I'll move my shit out to the garage and you can keep yours right where it's at, you big fuckin' baby." She told him. "I'm late, I gotta go. See you at the garage."

She stormed out.

Juice sighed and flopped back down on the bed. He was being a baby and an asshole, he knew. He'd apologize later and make it right. But God, why did she have to start as soon as he got out of bed?

Clarissa drove to TM faster than normal. She was so pissed off, she felt like she could spit nails. Damn him! Who the hell did he think he was, to demand that she get rid of her things? She slammed into her parking spot.

"What's wrong with you?" Half-Sack asked as she clattered out of her car.

"Sometimes, I want to thunder punch my fucking husband in the goddamned throat!" She snapped before stomping inside.

"Aw," Tig sighed. "Young love."

"You two still fightin' over this whole nursery thing?" Chibs asked, following her into the office. She nodded and proceeded to tell the Scotsman about their earlier conversation.

"Can you talk to him?" She asked finally. "Try and get it through his head?"

"Yeah," Chibs told her. "I'll knock the shithead around a bit, try and straighten him out for you."

She smiled. "Thanks, Chibby." She said, kissing his cheek. "You're the best."

"Ah, anything for me best lass." He said, tugging her braid. "You all right, now that you got that off your chest? Not gonna be bitin' these boys head's off the rest of the day?"

She nodded. "I'm good."

"All right then." He said and went out to talk to Clay and Jax.

Ten minutes later, Clarissa looked up when the office door opened. It was Clay and Jax, along with Elliot Oswald.

"Hi, Mr. Oswald." She said. "I heard you guys found Tristen. Is she all right?"

"That's what I'm here to talk about." He said. "But thank you for helping us look."

"Can you give us a few minutes, Ris?" Clay asked. She nodded and smiled, walking out into the bay area.

"Hey," She turned to see Juice coming up.

"I'm not speaking to you." She told him, walking off.

"She's pissed." He commented to Chibs and Half-Sack.

"She has every right to be." Chibs told him. He grabbed Juice by the collar of his shirt and hauled him outside. "From what I heard, you acted like a real ass clown this morning."

Juice shrugged. "Why's she gotta come at me full throttle first thing in the morning?"

"Because she's a woman." Chibs answered. "A pregnant woman with her hormones all over the place. What's your excuse?"

Again he shrugged and Chibs rolled his eyes. "Does that bunch of rubbish you have in that room mean more to you than your wife?"

"No, but-!"

"But what?"

"Well, all hers is a treadmill and a bunch of old books!" He protested.

"Did she ask you to get rid of anything?" Chibs asked.

"No," Juice muttered.

"All she wanted to do was to move her stuff in there too, right? Clear out her room for the baby?"

"Yeah," Juice huffed.

"And you're gonna throw a little bitch fit about it?" Chibs shook his head. "Boy, I oughta knock the piss out of you."

"Yeah," Juice sighed again.

"You find that girl and you apologize." Chibs told him.

"Okay."

He found Clarissa sitting in the garage, talking to Half-Sack. "Hey," He tried again. She shook her head and walked away.

"Shit." He said. He looked at Chibs. "How the hell am I supposed to apologize if she won't let me?"

Chibs shrugged. "I don't know."

Juice looked at Half-Sack. "She say anything to you?"

The Prospect shook his head. "Not really." He said. "Maybe you should just let her be mad for awhile. She'll cool off."

"You think so?" Juice asked. Half-Sack and Chibs both nodded.

"Yeah, yeah." Chibs said. "Come on, Clay wants us in the chapel, Juicy."

Clarissa went back to work. She knew she was being the childish one now, but Jesus, did he think he could act like a dick and then apologize and everything would just be a-okay? It didn't work like that.

Twenty minutes later, a knock on the door drew her from her thoughts. It was Half-Sack.

"Juice asked me to tell you that we're going to get tires." He said. "So you knew where he was."

"Okay." She dropped her head back down to her paperwork.

"You gonna stay mad at him forever?" Half-Sack asked. She could hear the smile in his voice, this boy who was the same age as her.

"Only for another hour or two." She replied.

"I'll tell him then." He said. She looked up.

"Sack!"

He paused and turned back. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for letting me know."

He nodded and smiled. "Yeah."

Clarissa stood at the door, watched her husband and the Prospect pull away. Juice gave her a wave and she sent a little one back at him. He smiled and her heart melted. Shit, she couldn't stay mad at him. She noticed Clay and her brother, their heads together.

"What's going on?" She asked, sensing it in her gut. Something was up. "What did Oswald want?"

"His daughter was raped last night." Jax told her. "He wants us to find the scumbag who did it."

Clarissa covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh no." She said. She felt her eyes tear up. "Oh, that poor girl."

Jax looked at her. He was having a hard time adjusting to this emotional, hormonal Clarissa. "You okay?" He asked. "Heard you and Juice got into it."

"Jesus, does everyone know?" She asked. "I'm all right. Just hormones, you know."

"Yeah," Jax dropped a kiss on her temple. "Want me to kick his ass?"

"No." She said. "He's already tried to apologize. I shot him down."

"Good girl." Clay told her. "Make him work for it, keeps him on his toes."

She laid her head against his shoulder. "You guys always say the right thing."

"I don't know about that." He said. He kissed her head too. "Go on back to work. Looks like we got more to deal with."

Hale and some of his deputies had pulled up. Clarissa went back in the office.

It didn't take them long to realize that the deputies were a set up, that Hale knew they were looking for the rapist and had sent his men to TM to keep the Sons from leaving.

"What're you doing?" Clarissa asked Tig as he dumped some powder into a pot of coffee.

"It's just some tranqs to knock them out." He answered. She gave him a look.

"You keep tranquilizers in your pocket?"

He grinned at her over his shoulder. "Never know when you might need them." He replied. "Lookin' at a twelve hour nap." He told Clay who had just walked in.

"Nice." Clay said.

"Comin' for refills." Jax said, leaning against the wall. The two deputies were right behind him.

"Fresh pot, boys." Tig said. "It's hot." He poured some in their cups. "Jackson?"

"No thanks." Jax said.

"How about you, Rissy?" Tig asked, grinning at her. She struggled to keep a straight face as she stood up and walked over to the file cabinets.

"None for me." She said. "Juice says I have to cut down on my caffeine for the baby." She patted her stomach.

"Oh, that's right." Tig said. "Speaking of Juice, he should be here soon Clay."

"Sometimes he gets lost." Clay told them. Clarissa frowned and he held up his hands. "Hey, he might be your old man, but he can be an airhead, is all I'm saying."

Before she could say anything, both of the deputies were passing out. Clay caught one, dropped him in Clarissa's chair.

"That was quick." Tig said.

"Good to the last drop!" Clay replied.

Clarissa shook her head. "That is so bad!" She said, laughing.

"Don't fall on the floor." Jax said and they all started to laugh.

"What am I supposed to do now, though?" Clarissa asked. "I can't work with Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum passed out in there!"

"Don't you have a nursery to arrange?" Clay asked. "Go home and start working on that."

"All right," She agreed. "Tell Juice where I am."

"I'm sure he can live for a few hours without his head up your ass." Clay told her. "Go on, we'll let him know."

She wasn't gone maybe ten minutes when Juice pulled up in the van. He had flowers with him.

"Is this what took you so long?" Clay asked, eyeing the lilies. "When I say get back here, I mean right now, not stopping to by your old lady a bunch of flowers, you got it?"

"Yeah," Juice nodded. "Where is she? I wanna give them to her."

"She left." Tig said. "Clay sent her home to start moving rooms around, keep her out of the way here."

"Oh." His shoulders sagged. "I'll give them to her later, I guess."

"Yeah," Clay told him. "I got shit for you to do, Romeo. Come on."

It took Clarissa all of forty-five minutes to move the things she could. A lot of it was heavy stuff and she knew she wasn't supposed to be lifting. She sat down on the couch and huffed. Well, this was just fine and dandy. Now what was she supposed to do?

She jumped a little when her phone rang. She was a little disappointed that it wasn't Juice. It was a number she didn't recognize, but she answered it anyway.

"Hello?"

"Yes, hello," The woman on the other end said. "Is this Clarissa?"

"Yes."

"Um, this is Tara, at St. Thomas." She said. "You asked to me to call you when Wendy was awake, and she is."

"Oh, is she?" Clarissa stood up. "Can I come in and see her?"

"Yeah," Tara sounded a little surprised. "Yeah, you can. That's fine."

"Hey," Clarissa said before she could hang up. "I'm glad you're back in Charming, Tara."

"Oh, well, thank you."

"Maybe we could, you know, do something sometime?" Clarissa asked. "Like we used to?"

"Oh," Tara sounded surprised again. "Yeah, Clarissa, I'd like that."

Clarissa now knew how she was gonna spend her afternoon, visiting with Wendy and then with Abel. Her mother wasn't too big of a fan of Wendy, and Clarissa didn't blame her, but she and Wendy had always gotten along well. They were friends, even after she and Jax split up.

"Hey," She said, walking into Wendy's room.

"Hey," Wendy looked surprised to see her. "What're you doing here?"

"Came to see you, girl." Clarissa pulled up a chair, sat down beside her. "How're you feeling?"

Wendy shrugged. "Better." She said. "Hey, Jax told me you were pregnant. Congratulations."

"Thanks." Clarissa told her.

"Juice is gonna make a great dad."

"You think so?"

"Oh, yeah," Wendy waved her hand. "Look at how good he is with Kenny and Ellie and with Lowell's little boy."

"It's different when it's your own though, I think." Clarissa said. "Besides, he and I kinda got into this morning."

She quickly told Wendy about their fight. Wendy rolled her eyes.

"Men are such babies." She said. She looked up at her ex-sister-in-law. "So…um…have you seen Abel?"

Clarissa nodded. "He's beautiful." She said. "Tiny, but…just beautiful. Juice and I came by to see him yesterday. We stopped in to see you too."

"I was out of it." Wendy smiled. "Is Juice pissed at me?"

"No," Clarissa shook her head. "No, he's not and neither am I. Mom says I should be, but…you're my friend. You're always gonna be my friend and you're sick." She took Wendy's hand. "You gotta get some help, Wen."

"I know," Her eyes welled up. "I know. I'm going to and it's gonna stick this time, Ris. I promise."

"All right." Clarissa stood and kissed Wendy's forehead. "I'm gonna go see the baby, okay? I'll see you later."

She ran into Tara on her way out. "Hey."

"Hey." Tara smiled at her. It was weird for her to see Clarissa as an adult. The last time Tara had clamped eyes on her, she'd been fourteen, wearing a Spice Girls t-shirt and starry-eyed over Leonardo DiCaprio. Now, according to Jax, she was married to a club member, the one with the ink on both sides of his mohawk, and pregnant. She eyed the small crow eater tattoo behind Clarissa's right ear, the same tattoo she had on the small of her back.

"I was just visiting Wendy." She said. "She seems better. Says she's gonna get help this time."

"That's what she says." Tara nodded. "I hope she does."

"Me too." Clarissa nodded. "Well, I'm gonna go see the baby. I'll see you later, huh?"

"Oh, yeah." Tara smiled at her.

On her way to the NICU, she passed what she assumed to be Tristen Oswald's room. Her mother was standing outside the door she was guarding Buckingham Palace. Clarissa nodded to her, but didn't stop to chat.

Abel's little room was empty, save for the baby. She slipped in, and sat down in the rocking chair beside his incubator.

"Hi, pretty boy." She said to him, touching the glass. "It's Aunt Rissy. It's just me this time, Uncle Juice couldn't come." She smiled. They only other kids that called them Aunt Rissy and Uncle Juice were Kenny and Ellie. They'd spent a lot of time with them over the last five years, while Opie was inside.

She was still sitting there talking when her mother came in.

"What're you doing here?" Gemma asked. Clarissa explained what had happened at the garage.

"The junkie's awake." Gemma said when she was done.

"I know." Clarissa sighed. "I already saw her."

"Still all buddy-buddy with her, even after this?" Gemma asked.

Clarissa shook her head. "She's my friend, okay?"

"She almost killed this baby." Gemma replied. "You need to show a little loyalty to this family and-."

"Mom," Clarissa held up her hand. "I've already been into it with Juice today; I don't need a fight with you too."

Gemma was quiet for a second. "What'd you fight with Juice about?"

Clarissa told her. "We'll make up when we both get home tonight." She said. "And I already started moving some of my stuff into the man cave."

"You've had a rough day, haven't you?" Gemma asked.

"Yeah." Clarissa nodded.

"Why don't you head home, go on to bed?"

Clarissa nodded again. "I think I will." She hugged her mother.

Gemma kissed her on the cheek. "You know how much I love you?"

"To the moon and back." Clarissa answered, grinning. "Love you, too."

On her way out, she passed Jax. "You seen my husband?" She asked. "I'm ready to make up with him now."

Jax grinned. "You need to go by the clubhouse." He said.

"Why?" Clarissa was instantly suspicious. "Is he hurt or-?"

"He's fine." Jax's grin grew. "Just go by there."

She worried all the way there about what was going on.

"Where's Juice?" She asked when she walked inside.

"He's over there." Tig motioned and she looked.

"Oh my God!" She ran over when she saw him lying on the floor. "What's wrong with him?" She knelt down beside him. "Is he hurt?"

"He's fine; he's knocked out." Clay explained. "Idiot took some of Tig's tranqs, thought they were speed."

"This is my fault." Clarissa said. Stupidly, she felt tears come into her eyes.

"How do you gather that?" Bobby asked, helping her up from the floor.

"We were fighting." She said. "If we hadn't been fighting, he wouldn't have taken them!"

"You don't know that." Bobby told her. "Besides, he's fine."

"Well, can I take him home?" She asked. "Put him to bed?"

"Oh no," Tig grinned. "We have something very special planned for him."

"What?" She asked. The others just smiled shit eating grins. "What're you gonna do to him?"

"Don't worry your pretty head about it." Clay told her. "Here, he brought you these flowers." He picked up the bouquet that was lying on the bar. They were a little wilted, but still looked pretty. "Go on home; he'll be there in the morning."

She had no choice but to listen. She took the flowers and headed home. She hated sleeping alone and tried not to worry about Juice.

She'd see him in the morning.

* * *

**Authors Note: I thought I'd show a little bit of Juice's a*hole side. Every guy has one, no matter how sweet they are, and some of the things he does make me think he can be really childish when he wants to be. So I hope you all enjoyed that.**


	4. Chapter Four

Clarissa bent over the toilet of the master bathroom. Morning sickness was kicking her ass. Juice held her hair back for her as she puked.

"Get it all up." He said in a soothing voice, patting her back. "There you go."

She sat back and wiped her mouth on a bit of toilet paper he handed her. "This sucks." She said.

"Are you supposed to puke this much?" He asked, helping her up.

Clarissa rinsed her mouth out with water, spat it in the sink. "I think it's normal." She said, grabbing her toothbrush and putting some Crest on it. "_What to Expect_ says it passes."

Juice nodded. He was taking this a day at a time. Pregnancy was uncharted territory for him; for both of them.

"You're taking your vitamins?" He asked. She nodded.

"Everyday, worry wart." She wiped the toothpaste from her mouth. "Come on, we'll be late for work."

He rode his bike and Clarissa followed in the car. They hadn't been at work but for a few minutes when Tig pulled in.

"We got troubles." He said.

Clarissa spun around in her desk chair, eating a bran muffin and a glass of orange juice. She really missed her Mountain Dew, but with Bobby the food Nazi and Juice his second-in-command, she knew there was no way she was getting near a soda for awhile. She tried to work and not to wonder about what Tig had been so worried about.

"What's going on?" She asked Juice as soon as they came out.

"Nothing." He said. "Everything's fine."

She gave him a Look. "We're _not_ Donna and Ope." She told him. "I'm not going to bury my head in the sand and pretend that something's not wrong just because I don't want to know about it."

"I just don't want you to worry." He said. "You'll just get stressed out and that's not good for the baby-."

"What's not good for the baby is me not knowing whether or not its Daddy is safe." She cut in. "What's going on, Juice?"

He sighed and ran his head over his mohawk. There was no arguing with her, she'd learned too well from her mother. And she was right; they were the kind of couple that told each other everything. There were no secrets between them. When he'd been patched in to the club, Gemma had sat them down and explained that there was only two ways for a member and his old lady to work: either she knew nothing or she knew everything. There was no on the fence in this lifestyle. Clarissa had chosen to know everything.

"There's a fed in town." His said quietly. "We don't know if he's here for us, but…it seems to me like he's gotta be."

"We have all that Russian hardware." She said. "If they raid this place, you guys…the whole club, will go inside."

"I know, baby." He said. "We're figuring it out. Jax and Bobby are going to Indian Hills to talk to your Uncle Jury about storing the guns there. If it works out, me and Tig are gonna drive the oil barrels there."

She frowned. She hated when they went to see the Devil's Tribe. He grinned, knowing what her glitch was.

"Come on, you trust me, don't you?" He asked. "You know I've never been unfaithful to you, right?"

"I know." She said. "It's not you I don't trust, it's all those little skanks running around with their asses and titties hangin' out."

His grin grew, he couldn't help it. "I'll keep my eyes covered the whole time I'm there, I promise."

She kissed him. "You better."

"I'll keep him in line." Jax said as he walked into the office. "Don't worry about it."

"You worry about keeping yourself alive." Clarissa told him, giving him a hug. "I love you, Bub."

He hugged her back, surprised. She hardly ever called him _Bub_ anymore. "Love you, too." He said. He laid his hand on her stomach. "Take care of my niece or nephew."

"Look at this, look at this." Juice said a few minutes after Jax had walked outside. He was leaning against the door, drinking a bottle of water.

"What?" Clarissa looked up.

"Look who's here." He grinned. "It's the doctor."

"What?" Clarissa walked over in time to see Tara getting out of her car. "Wonder what she's doing here."

"Trying to get back with your brother would be my guess." He said.

Clarissa looked at the two of them together. "You think so?"

Juice shrugged. "Why else would she come back to Charming?"

"Oh shit." Clarissa moaned when her mom pulled in.

"Gemma's not too fond of Tara, I take it." Juice commented. Clarissa shook her head.

"Those two were always like oil and water." She said. "Me? I liked her, I thought she was cool. But I mean, I was ten when they got together, fourteen when she left. She never let me out though, you know? Like, she always took me to the movies and stuff with them. Actually," Clarissa grinned. "We saw Titanic four times without Jax."

"That's like, twelve hours of Leo." Juice said.

"I do love me some Leo." Clarissa agreed. She laughed and kissed Juice. "I gotta get back to work."

"Me too." He said.

* * *

"Hey Tara," Clarissa said a few minutes later when she came in the office to sign some papers.

"Hey," The doctor smiled at her. "How are you feeling?"

Clarissa shrugged. "Morning sickness blows."

Tara pulled a sympathetic face. "You have it pretty bad?"

"Every morning." Clarissa replied. "Some afternoons too. I think my husband's worried."

Tara glanced into the bay area, where she could see Clarissa's husband bent over the hood of a car. "Tell him it's nothing to worry about. Ninety-five percent of the time, it passes before your first trimester is over. How far along are you?"

"About five and half weeks." Clarissa said. "I still got a while to go before my first trimester is even over."

"But it passes after a few minutes?" Tara asked. "It's not lingering?"

"Yeah, it's gone within fifteen minutes."

"It's normal." She told her. "Nothing for your husband to worry about."

Half Sack came in then, with the papers for Tara to sign.

"You all right, Prospect?" Clarissa asked him after Tara was gone. "You seem twitchier than normal."

"Well…" He looked around, to make sure no one else could hear them. "Clay kinda…caught me checking out your mom earlier."

"What?" Clarissa laughed. "Seriously? Oh my God, that's fucking hilarious!"

"No, it's not!" Half Sack hissed. "He's pissed."

She laughed again. "I'm sure he is. You were checking out my mom?"

"Hey," The Prospect protested. "Good looking women run in your family." He grinned at her and she rolled her eyes.

"Don't even think about it." She said. "Because Juice will beat the shit out of you."

"Why would I beat the shit out of him?" Juice asked. He'd come back in for his water bottle.

"For checking me out." Clarissa said. Juice looked at Half Sack.

"Yeah. Don't be scoping on my woman. I don't like that."

"He wasn't." Clarissa said. "Apparently, I'm not the Teller woman he's hot for. He likes Mom."

"What?" Juice looked at him and began to grin.

"Clay caught him eyeballing my mom and now he's in hot water." Clarissa laughed again. "I don't care how many times I say it; it never gets any less funny!"

"Yeah, you're both hilarious." Half Sack said. "I got work to do."

"Poor Prospect." Clarissa said. "He can't win for losing."

"He'll be fine." Juice kissed her head. "You know I love you?"

"Love you, too." She said. "Better get back to work before Clay catches us."

"Yeah," Juice took a drink. "Remember when we used to sneak away from work to fool around. We should do that again sometime."

"Maybe when it's not five thousand degrees." Clarissa agreed. "And I don't feel like I just got hit by a garbage truck."

"Yeah," He kissed her again and they both went back to work.

A couple of hours passed. Clarissa buried herself in paperwork, trying not to worry about her brother and Bobby riding into Mayan territory. She drank a ton of water and went pee about a dozen times. Seemed like that's all she did anymore, was pee. It was on her way back from the bathroom that she noticed the guys standing close to Clay, talking. Juice nodded and left the garage, pulling out his cell. Tig was looking pissed.

Something's up, she thought. What now?

She found out twenty minutes later when Juice came back in from making phone calls.

"What's going on now?" She asked him.

"We're patching over the Tribe." He said. Clarissa's eyes widened.

"No shit?" She asked. He shook his head.

"Clay thinks it's the best move for both clubs." He said.

"What do you think about it?" She asked. He shrugged.

"What do I know, I'm a grunt." He said. She shook her head.

"No, you're not. Half Sack's a grunt. You're a patched member; what do you think about it?"

"I don't think it's a bad idea." He said. "It gives us a foothold in that part of Nevada, it protects the Tribe."

"What's up with Tig?" She asked. Juice smiled.

"He's pissed 'cause he's gonna miss the patch over party."

"Oh God." Clarissa rolled her eyes. "Of course he is. What about you, you pissed about missing it?"

Juice nodded. "I'm real torn up over it." He caught the look on his wife's face. "I'm kidding! Jesus, there isn't anything Jury's girls can do for me that I can't get at home. Rissy, you know you have nothing to worry about, okay?"

"I know." She said. But she couldn't help it and he saw it in her face. "Come here." He wrapped his arms around her. She leaned her head against his chest and breathed in the scent of him. It stirred something deep in her belly and she remembered what he had said earlier, how they used to sneak away to fool around. When had they stopped doing that? We're they suddenly a boring, married couple? She slid her hand along the waist band of his jeans, slipping inside them.

"What're you doing?" Juice asked when he felt her hand clamp around him.

"It's a long drive to Nevada." She replied. "I'm just giving you something to think about on the road. Come on."

She pulled her hand out of his jeans and grabbed his hand. She peeked out the office door. No one was around, so, tugging on his arm; she led him into the bathroom.

"This is crazy." He said as she locked the door. His breath hitched when she sunk to her knees in front of him.

Clarissa unbuttoned his jeans and pulled them, along with his boxers, to his ankles. She was glad to see he was already hard and he hissed out a breath when she took the tip of him in her mouth.

When they were finished, Clarissa opened the door slowly. Clay and Tig were right outside.

"Shit," She whispered to Juice. "How're we gonna get out of here without them spotting us? They'll know what we were doing in here."

Juice shrugged; he didn't really care if they knew. How many men could say that they got blowjobs and doggy style sex in the bathroom at work? Not many, he was willing to bet.

"You two might as well come on out." Clay said without looking up. "We know what you're up to."

Clarissa opened the door and crept out, meek like. "How did you know?"

"Not hard to figure out." Clay replied. "Both of you disappear, bathroom's locked, weird noises coming from inside…"

She elbowed Juice in the ribs. "Told you that you were being too loud."

He shrugged again. "I talked to Happy and some of the others. They'll be here soon."

"Good, good." Clay nodded. "Back to work, both of you."

"Jesus Christ," He muttered to Tig after they were gone. "I've said it before and I'll say it again: those two hump like gorillas."

"Hey," Gemma greeted her daughter when she walked in the office. "Where you been?"

"Uh…around?"

Gemma gave her a knowing smirk. "Yeah, guess I don't wanna know. So the guys are all gonna be gone tonight. You wanna stay with me?"

"Sure." Clarissa said. It was sort of her and her mom's thing, when their men were gone; neither of them could sleep, so Clarissa would stay at Gemma and Clay's. They'd sit up, drinking wine and watching old movies. "I'm out on the wine part, though."

"Obviously." Gemma winked at her daughter. "But I picked you up some Mountain Dew."

"You're an angel of mercy." Clarissa kissed her mom's cheek. "And you know what we should watch that we haven't seen in forever?"

"What's that?"

"Bennie and Joon." Clarissa replied. "Some old school Johnny Depp."

"Sounds like a plan." Gemma said.

* * *

Later that night, Juice drive Unser's truck towards Nevada as Tig dozed in the seat next to him. Shit, he couldn't even play the radio 'cause Tig said it kept him awake.

He knew that the older man was already angry about missing the party and then about getting bit by that fucking dog, but shit, none of that was his fault.

Okay, the he might have to take a little bit of blame in the thing with the dog. But did Tig have to be such an asshole about it?

The truth was, he didn't want to be here either. He'd much rather be at home, in his own bed, with his wife. He grinned to himself, thinking about what had gone down in the bathroom earlier. Literally gone down, he thought, his grin widening. That had been fun, the kind of shit they'd done when they'd first started sleeping together.

He had a hell of a girl, he thought. He knew she was worried about him being among Jury's pussy corral, but she didn't have anything to worry about. He might look, from time to time, but he never thought of straying, not ever. And he didn't intend to. So, he let his mind wander over Clarissa's body, and all the things he loved to do to that body, as he drove on through the night.

* * *

Clarissa awoke the next morning in her mother's bed. They never told Clay, or hell, anyone for that matter, but when the men were gone, they shared a bed. It helped both of them sleep better.

"Hey, baby." Gemma said sleepily. "How're you feeling this morning?"

"Ugh." Clarissa jumped up and rushed for the bathroom, the first wave of sickness hitting her. Gemma winced as she heard her daughter puking. Poor kid.

When the bout had passed and they were both showered and dressed for the day, Gemma looked at her.

"I've gotta run the good doctor's car to her. You wanna tag along?"

Clarissa shrugged. What better things did she have to do? Other than mope, of course, and that wasn't getting her anywhere. "Sure."

Twenty minutes later, she followed her mother up to Tara's front door.

"Car's ready," Gemma said to her. "Figured you might need it for work."

"Oh," Tara was clearly surprised. "Yeah. You, uh, drove it here?"

Gemma exhaled. "I was thinkin' that you and me, we got off to a bad start. It's my way of saying sorry."

"Can I use your bathroom?" Clarissa asked suddenly. Tara looked a little taken aback, but she nodded.

"Yeah, it's down the hall."

"Thanks."

It wasn't just her urge to use the rest room that had her practically sprinting down the hallway. She didn't know what game her mother was playing and she didn't want any part of it. Gemma Teller-Morrow did not apologize, or hardly ever. Clarissa didn't know what was up, but she'd rather just shut herself in the bathroom and pretend it wasn't going on.

* * *

"What do you mean, you're gonna be down there for a whole week?"

Juice winced as Clarissa's voice shrilled out of the phone at him. Half the heads in the bar turned to look at him.

"Clay needs me to stay, watch over the assembly-."

"I don't give a rat's ass what Clay needs!" She said. She was crying. Why was she crying? "I need you here! Goddamn it! Put him on the phone!"

Juice held it out to his father-in-law. "Clarissa." He said in way of explanation.

Clay took the phone, trying to calm her down. Jury sat down on the stool beside Juice.

"She sounds usually upset." He commented. Juice grinned.

"Hormones, you know."

"Yeah," Jury laughed. "Bobby told me you two were expecting a little one. April, isn't it?"

"Yep." Juice said. He didn't know Jury that well, had only met him a handful of times, one of them having been at he and Clarissa's wedding. "April the Twentieth."

"Well, hang in there." Jury told him. "With the hormones, I mean. It gets worse before it gets better."

"Great." Juice nodded.

"Here." Clay handed him the phone back. "She's calm enough to talk."

"Baby?" He said. He heard her sniffling and hoped her tears were through. He hated to hear her cry. "You okay?"

"Yeah," She said, but her voice was still tearful. "Sorry about that. I just…I miss you so much!"

"I miss you too." He said. "But it's just a week and then I'll be home. We'll talk on the phone everyday, I promise. Twice a day, if you want. In the morning and before we go to bed, okay?"

"Okay." She sniffed. "I can't sleep without you."

"I know." He said. He had a hard time sleeping without her as well. "I'll be home soon."

"Clay says I can stay with him and Mom while you're gone, if I don't want to be alone."

"That's a good idea." He replied. "You should do that, baby." He looked up to see one of the Vegas guys motioning to him. "Sugar, I gotta go. I love you okay?"

"I love you too."

"I'll talk to you in the morning, all right?"

"Okay," He could hear her on the verge of tears again. "Talk to you in the morning."

He sighed when they hung up and stuck his phone in his pocket, before heading over to the others.

"Your old lady doesn't take well to you being away, huh?" The guy asked. Juice thought his name was Swifty or something. Juice shook his head.

"Well, she's pregnant, and she's kinda all over the place right now." He answered, feeling like he needed to defend his wife. "Normally, she's not this emotional."

"Oh," Swifty nodded. "Yeah, my old lady just had our second baby." He smiled and his whole face softened. "A little girl."

"Yeah?" Juice signaled for a drink.

"Yeah," Swifty dug a picture out of his cut pocket of two little girls, the older one about three and the baby just an infant. "That's my girls, Lilly and Violet."

"They're beautiful." Juice answered truthfully. He was kind of excited for the day when he could show off pictures of his baby.

"Thanks." Swifty said. "Your old lady, she's Clay's daughter, right?"

"Step daughter, yeah." Juice nodded.

"So you married right into the first family, huh?"

Juice laughed. "Yeah, I guess I did."

"How far along is she?"

"Just about six weeks."

"Shit," Swifty took a drink of his beer. "You got a ways to go, brother. Y'all picked out names yet?"

Juice shook his head. "Not really. Well, if it's a boy, we're going to do Thomas, after her brother who passed away. But no idea if it's a girl."

"My old lady has a thing for flower names, obviously." Swifty said. "It's a hard thing, picking a name. It's gonna be with a person the rest of their life, so you want something strong. You know, a name that's gonna withstand all the bad times."

"Yeah," Juice nodded and it got him to thinking. They needed to start talking about names.

Back in Charming, Clarissa cried for about twenty minutes after she hung up with Juice. Gemma let her, stroking her hair.

"You should be proud." She said when her daughter's crying jag was over.

"Of what?"

"Of the fact that Clay chose him to stay behind, to oversee the AK operation. It shows that Clay has faith that Juice can get stuff done." Gemma continued to stroke her hair. "Come on, let's go see Abel."

"All right." Clarissa wiped her eyes, attempted to fix her hair. She thought about what her mother had just said. That, in Clay having Juice stay behind, it showed faith in her husband; that he could get the job done.

It didn't mean she was going to miss him any less, but it was something to hang onto.


End file.
